Rendering profile
- Sharpness
- good
- Tags
- N74-derived, push-friendly
- Best use cases
- street, reportage, low-light, indoor
Film stock wiki
ORWO P400
ORWO Wolfen P400 is an ISO 400 panchromatic B&W negative film in 135 format, produced at Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Germany. A variant of the ORWO N74 cine emulsion stripped of its anti-halation layer for still photography, it delivers a ±2-stop latitude and is noted for rich tonal gradation on a polyester base.
Key specs
- Brand
- ORWO
- Model
- P400
- ISO
- 400
- Process
- BW
- Formats
- 135
- Production status
- In production
- Introduced
- 2022
Grain
medium
Contrast
medium
Saturation
Unknown
Latitude
wide (±2 stops)
Technical details
- Film base
- polyester
- Push/pull
- ±2 stops latitude; N74 emulsion without anti-halation layer
Handling notes
- Exposure
- Rate at ISO 400; push-friendly
- Development
- Standard B&W chemistry (D-76, Rodinal, HC-110)
Profile notes
The ORWO Wolfen P400 is a 400 ASA black-and-white photographic film produced at the historic Bitterfeld-Wolfen factory. Its emulsion is derived from ORWO N74 (the same cine film base used in UN54), but with the anti-halation layer removed to suit still-photography workflows. This gives the P400 a somewhat different character from the NP100—higher speed, more grain, and a slightly different tonal response. With ±2 stops of latitude, the film handles a range of lighting conditions well and can be pushed or pulled. Like NP100, the polyester base ensures excellent flatness for scanning. Develops in standard B&W chemistry.
Aliases
Wolfen P400ORWO Wolfen P 400
Related stocks
BW
ORWO NP100
ORWO Wolfen NP100 is an ISO 100 fine-grain panchromatic B&W negative film in 135 format, produced at Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Germany. Announced in April 2022, it is ORWO's first professionally finished B&W photo film in 50 years, featuring a dyed anti-halation layer between base and emulsion for improved sharpness.
BW
ORWO UN54
ORWO Wolfen UN54 is an ISO 100 panchromatic B&W negative film in 135 format, produced by FilmoTec at Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Germany. A still-photography respool of the ORWO N74 cine emulsion, it offers high silver content, fine grain, rich tonal scale, and reversal-processing capability.
C41
ORWO NC400
ORWO Wolfen NC400 is an ISO 400 C-41/ECN-2 compatible color negative film in 135 format, produced at the historic Bitterfeld-Wolfen factory (Germany). Released in 2022, it is the companion film to NC500 with less grain, a subtle green bias, and more vibrant color rendering than the NC500.